A Meeting With Fate
by meridian.fall
Summary: She lived her life never knowing who she was. Finally breaking free from a fate that she could not accept she is making her own. Or is she?
1. Chapter 1

**I'm not sure where this is going at the moment, or if it's any good. Let me know if it's at all interesting and I will be happy to write more, seeing as it's holidays and I have nothing else to do. Enjoy!**

Hot tears stung her face as they ran down her rosy cheeks, falling gracefully to the paved ground she was standing on. The cold stones of the wall permeated into her body, and she shivered as the passion that had flooded her body began to disperse. Now that the initial shock had left her, anger quickly replaced it, spreading out through her body. Leaning her head back on the wall she let the thoughts whirl around in her head, seeing them pass again and again, not bothering to hold onto any of them. She stayed like that for what seemed like hours, until one thought that screamed louder to her than any of the others, _she should move, she should do something rather than standing here wallowing in the unjustness of it all. _Agreeing with her self she pushed back off the wall and strode quickly down the corridor, the torches mounted in brackets on the walls flickered as she walked, casting an eerie shadow that followed her.

Reaching her chamber she pushed the door open and stepped inside. Quickly and with no second thoughts she gathered up some crucial items, shoved them into a bag and made her way out and back down the corridor. She stepped softly, not wanting anyone to be alerted to her presence. Reaching the main door, she withdrew the heavy bolts as quietly as was possible and eased them slowly open. Slipping through, she closed them tightly behind her. Knowing that she still was not safe she turned and ran as fast as she could threw the empty streets, the sound of her leather clad feet resounding off the fronts of houses and shops that lined the streets. She ran and ran, knowing that the moment she stopped she would collapse and be able to move no further, so she urged herself forward. Her foot landed on dirt and she looked up. The densely suburban area had given way to open country, the land was bathed in dull grey as the first rays of the sun struck the earth.

Spying a hay stack in a field near her she jogged to it with the last bit of remaining strength she had left. She collapsed into its welcoming warmth, burrowing deep inside, protecting herself from the cool morning. She let sleep claim her, relaxing for the first time in hours.

............................

Something was digging into her back. She fought the temptation to open her eyes and remove whatever it was that was irritating her. Eventually though the irritation overcame her desire to remain in the realm between sleep and wakefulness, and she sat up, pulling the straw that had been digging into her back. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes she let the memories of the night before filter back into her mind, tears of anger threatened to overwhelm her, but she suppressed them, now was not the time to give in to her emotions. She surveyed the landscape around her, taking in the lush green of the fields, dotted with haystacks. Lone trees stood tall by themselves, their arms branching out in a wide circle. She sighed. For the first time in years she did not have that feeling of claustrophobia pushing down on her. Slowly she stood, shaking her clothing to get the last remnants of straw out of her clothing and picking it out of her long raven hair. Reaching down for her cloth bag she slung it over her back and walked back to the road she had been following last night.

She trudged along the road, watching as the landscape changed from lush fields dotted with haystacks to wide sweeping plains. Her stomach rumbled and she clenched her arm around her tightly, trying to suppress the need for food. She looked up at the sky, clouds passing swiftly over, and judged the time to be around midday. She had to eat or something, or she would not be able to carry on.

Scanning the roadside she spotted a winter berry plant not far away. Jogging to it she smiled with joy, _what were the chances? _Stuffing her mouth with as many berries as she could fit she sighed in relief as the sweet juice from the berries soothed her parched throat. She ate until she was full and then preceded to pick the remainder of the berries for later, placing them in a handkerchief. Walking back to the road she continued on her way.

The day passed quickly, and before she knew it the sun was beginning its decent and the light was slowly fading. _Time to find somewhere to sleep _she thought to herself. Lights twinkled softly in the distance. _It had to be a farm house, should see ask to be able to stay there the night? _Almost immediately she dismissed the thought, she did not have enough trust in others to consider it as a plausible idea. The small farm house came closer as she walked, smoke spiraled out of the chimney. _Perhaps there would be a barn that she could stay in_. Holding onto that hope she picked up her pace. Hiding behind a tree she spied what she had been hoping for, a small barn close to the small farm house, _that would do for that night. _She edged her way around the trunk and keeping to the shadows snuck to the slightly ajar doors of the barn. The moment she got inside she smiled, it was full of hay. _At least she would be warm tonight_.

Burrowing her way in like she had done the night before she lay with her eyes open, staring at the ceiling above her. She kept her thoughts at bay, she had no wish to re-visit them, to relive her memories. _That was all forgotten now. She could be who ever she wanted_.

**Please, please, please tell me what you think. **


	2. Chapter 2

Arath strode through the busy market angrily. He was over everything. Over being the next in line for the throne, over his parents constantly telling him what was "proper" and what he should and should not be doing. Their latest argument had been about his marriage to a girl he didn't even know. He was refusing to marry her, she would probably be some atrociously irritating girl who fawned over him and who had no opinions of her own. He despised those sorts of people. Though the market was so busy, he made his way effortlessly through the crowd, it seemed to part to let him through, and he payed no attention to where he was going. As he walked her saw someone out of the corner of his eye, but he payed it no attention, they would move for him. So he continued on his path, letting the anger wash through him. A body slammed into him and he stumbled backwards, quickly catching his footing before he fell. The first feeling of shock left him and was replaced with anger. _How could someone be so stupid, did they not know who he was? _The girl who had landed on the ground pushed herself up to her knees, and then stood.

"what is your problem?" his voice was filled with anger. No doubt this girl thought that this would make some good story for her friends later. Well he was not going to let her get away that easy. He saw that she was trembling slightly. _Good _he thought to himself, she should be.

"Well? Do you not think that you owe me an apology?" This would be an easy win, there was no way that this dirty and disheveled girl would stand up to her.

"No, I do not think that I owe you an apology, though I do think that you owe me one"

He was slightly shocked at her answer. He had never had any talk to him like that in his life, apart from his parents. He heard the slight trembling in her voice as she finished, but she held herself strong and clenched her fists to her side.

His eyes narrowed at her,

"I think you should perhaps reconsider your decision, I will forgive you if you apologise now"

He decided that it did not matter that she spoke well, he was the crowned prince and she was his subject, she should be on her hands and knees begging for him to forgive her. He watched her, waiting for her reply.

"I won't reconsider, though I would be happy to accept an equal share of the blame"

He could not believe this girl. How could someone be so self possessed.

"Accept an equal share of the blame" He weighed the words, he could still not believe that she had actually said that, and to him of all people.

"You are either incredibly arrogant or incredibly stupid, and judging from your appearance I'm going with stupid"

He saw her blush violently. He had won now. She would fall at his feet begging for mercy. He opened his mouth to tell her that perhaps he would be lenient, but she beat him to it.  "I am not stupid, I am anything but that, and it was not my entire fault that I bumped into you, you stepped in front of me and I couldn't stop myself in time to avoid you, so I stand by my decision of it only being half my fault, and if you were not so arrogant and conceited and full of your self you would just admit it and we could both move on"

He was a taken aback at her outburst. He saw that she was trying to hold back tears, and amusement quickly replaced his shock.

"Not stupid? I must say that I would beg to differ, though you do seem to be quite passionate about what you believe in, no matter how incorrect you may be"

He was thoughtful for a moment, she was not as stupid as he had first assumed her to be. She spoke well, which he judged to be the result of some education. Though looking at the state of her you would never know it. He saw her holding her arm.

"Is there something the matter with your arm?"

He saw her look down at her arm.

"Oh, I twisted it when I fell"

Her answer was dismissive, she clearly was not going to be steered away from the matter at hand. He saw her blink and shake her head as if to clear it.

"Are you alright?"

He was somewhat concerned, she did not look so well. The colour that had spread its way across her cheeks had paled considerably. She didn't reply, and he watched as she fell, as if in slow motion, to the hard ground.

He looked at her body lying on the ground, and sighed. There was no way that he could just leave her here. Bending down he picked her up, noting how light she was, and turned to make his way back to the palace.

.....................

The moment he walked through the palace doors, he walked quickly into one of the lounge rooms, setting the girl down on a couch. He then stepped outside the door and requested a Maid send for the Doctor. He sunk into one of the chairs opposite the couch and looked at the girl. Her knee length skirt was ripped at tattered at the ends, and her jacket was I much the same state, yet he could see that they were tailored to fit her, even though they now hung loosely from her malnourished body. Her long her was matted and tangled, and he assumed that when it was clean it would be a dark raven colour. Her face was streaked with dirt, but he could see the pale skin that was below it. All in all he surmised that she was no where near being beautiful, but she was not so unattractive, slightly above the average he decided. The sound of someone opening the door behind him interrupted his thoughts and he stood.

"Doctor Harven, I thank you for your quick arrival"

The Doctor smiled and bowed slightly

"Of course, where is my patient?"

He motioned to the couch and the Doctor strode quickly across the room, kneeling by the couch. He placed his fingers on her neck, feeling for a pulse. Satisfied that she was not in an extreme danger of dying, he turned and faced Arath.

"Where did you find her?"

He shifted on his feet slightly,

"I bumped into her in the market, she fell, I believe that she twisted her arm, and she just, fainted. I could not have just left her there"

The last sentence he said defensively. _He had done nothing wrong. _

The Doctor nodded and turned back to the girl.

"She is clearly malnourished, the fall no doubt added to her physical state, I am sure she will be fine, I will take her back to my office to keep an eye on her"

He lifted her gently off the couch and nodded to Arath as he walked out of the room.

The moment the Doctor had left the room, he sunk back into the chair he had been sitting in and stared aimlessly at the spotless white ceiling above him.


End file.
